One of the best things about Facebook is the fact that searching for people you may know is incredibly easy – yet the platform offers a comprehensive level of privacy and security that allows every user to hide their profile if they prefer.
There are different privacy levels that users can access when finetuning their Facebook profile.
These range from switching their account to ‘Private’ as opposed to ‘Public’, right through to changing the visibility of posts and tags to ‘Only Me’, and even deactivating your account completely. In this article, we’re sharing some of main benefits to each privacy level and how to identify the best option for you.
Why Might You Hide Your Facebook Profile?
The first question to ask yourself is whether you want to hide your profile from everyone, including friends, or whether you want to simply update your privacy settings so that only friends can see your posts and information.
Typically, users who want to hide or limit their Facebook exposure do so because they want to keep visibility of their posts and information restricted.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the best ways to do so.
Option 1: Set Your Profile to Private
Facebook profiles can be set to Private mode or Public mode.
Public mode enables any Facebook user to visit your profile and access your information, view your photos, and interact with your posts.
Private mode locks people who aren’t your Facebook friends out of viewing anything more than your name, profile picture, and a few basic details.
Changing your profile from Public to Private mode (or back again) can be done via your Settings, selecting ‘Default Audience Settings’ and then opting for the right mode for you.
Option 2: Hide Your Profile From Search
Did you know that there is a Facebook setting that lets you hide your audience visibility to ‘Only Me’, meaning that your profile will not appear on any search results?
To unlock this function, simply follow the same process as above and navigate to the audience settings page, then choose ‘Custom Settings’.
This is a third option alongside Public and Private mode, that lets you tailor the different aspects of your Facebook profile.
To hide your profile from search engines, switch off the toggle at the bottom of the custom menu.
You can also select the audience and visibility settings for tags, your public posts, your reels and stories, future posts, and your public information on Facebook.
Option 3: Deactivate Your Profile
By far the most effective way to hide your Facebook profile completely is to deactivate it – though there is a catch.
When you deactivate your Facebook account, you can no longer access it yourself. The first time you log into your account after deactivating it, you restore it to life – meaning that while this is certainly a way to hide your profile, it also limits your ability to use Facebook effectively.
To do this, simply head into your Accounts Centre via Settings, and click through to the ‘Deactivation or Deletion’ page. These two actions have very different consequences, so be sure to select the right one before proceeding.
You can reinstate your account at any time, using the above options to limit visibility of your information and keep your posts more private.
Should You Change Your Facebook Settings?
More and more users are opting for private profiles in order to protect their personal information and data – not to mention their photos and other uploads.
Taking some time to familiarise yourself with the process of adjusting your privacy settings, and understanding the benefits of doing so, will help you to ensure your Facebook profile is fir for purpose. We hope this helps!
